Suspenseful film that will have you on the edge of your seat until an amazing finale . Intriguing film is packed with thrills , suspense , plot twists , and results to be quite entertaining . An American woman (Carol Lynley) and her brother (Keir Dullea) report that her young daughter is missing from a nursery kindergarten , but there seems to be no evidence that she ever existed . As the main trouble the police led by a cunning inspector (Laurence Olivier) and his helper (Clive Revill) soon face is : Does the child really exist? . No one admitted while the clock is ticking!
Stirring as well as exciting yarn packs intense drama , thrills , suspense , puzzled events , twists and turns . This is a suspenseful flick that really thrills . The atmosphere and perverse intrigue enhance as well as the relationship among protagonist develops . From start to finish the intrigue and thrilling scenes are continuous till a striking ending . Penélope and John Mortimer's script along with uncredited Ira Levin is plenty of enjoyable incidentals and interesting events . Screenplay does something strange by the end : it actually removes the stakes of everything that came before with its surprising revelation that had been built up by that point about the strange missing . Very good cast gives perfect interpretation such as Laurence Olivier as an obstinate cop , Carol Lynley at her best , as an unsettling mother , though Columbia Pictures wanted Otto Preminger to cast Jane Fonda as Ann Lake, who was eager to play the role, but Preminger insisted upon using Carol Lynley ; furthermore , Keir Dullea as the suspect brother . Very good support cast such as Clive Revill as an intelligent deputy , Noel Coward as a drunken old intellectual with a vast collection of sadistic-looking sculptures d'art , Finlay Currie as a doll maker who undergoes surgery at a macabre dolls' hospital , Anna Massey as a nursery attendant and Martita Hunt as a nutty old mistress who records childhood's fantasies . Plus , other Brit secondaries in brief appearances as Adrienne Corri and Percy Herbert . Evocative and adequate photography in black and white by professional cinematographer Denis Coop . Atmospheric and appropriate musical score by composer Paul Glass . A remake to this film was planned during the period of 2007-2009 , Reese Witherspoon was attached to the project which was ultimately shelved.
This engrossing , riveting picture was effective and compellingly directed by Otto Preminger . At the beginning he became a stage director and subsequently a notorious secondary actor . Otto directed several films , nowadays many of them are considered as classic movies . He made ¨Laura¨ that was released in 1944 and Preminger ranked as one of the top directors in the world . He realized all kind of genres as Court drama such as the great success ¨Anatomy of a murder¨, ¨Court martial of Billy Mitchell¨ , Noir film as ¨Laura¨ which made him an A-list director in Hollwyood , ¨Angel Face¨ , ¨Man with a golden arm¨, Religious drama as ¨The Cardinal¨ , Musical as ¨Porgy and Bess¨, ¨Carmen Jones¨ , Western as ¨River with no return¨ and historical as ¨Saint Joan¨, ¨Exodus¨ though also had some flop as ¨Rosebud¨ getting scathing reviews , though with ¨The human factor¨ won him respectful notices . However , his powers began to wane after and by the end of the decade of the 60s he was considered washed-up . ¨Bunny Lake is missing¨ resulted to be one of the his best films . Rating : Better than average . Worthwhile watching .
Stirring as well as exciting yarn packs intense drama , thrills , suspense , puzzled events , twists and turns . This is a suspenseful flick that really thrills . The atmosphere and perverse intrigue enhance as well as the relationship among protagonist develops . From start to finish the intrigue and thrilling scenes are continuous till a striking ending . Penélope and John Mortimer's script along with uncredited Ira Levin is plenty of enjoyable incidentals and interesting events . Screenplay does something strange by the end : it actually removes the stakes of everything that came before with its surprising revelation that had been built up by that point about the strange missing . Very good cast gives perfect interpretation such as Laurence Olivier as an obstinate cop , Carol Lynley at her best , as an unsettling mother , though Columbia Pictures wanted Otto Preminger to cast Jane Fonda as Ann Lake, who was eager to play the role, but Preminger insisted upon using Carol Lynley ; furthermore , Keir Dullea as the suspect brother . Very good support cast such as Clive Revill as an intelligent deputy , Noel Coward as a drunken old intellectual with a vast collection of sadistic-looking sculptures d'art , Finlay Currie as a doll maker who undergoes surgery at a macabre dolls' hospital , Anna Massey as a nursery attendant and Martita Hunt as a nutty old mistress who records childhood's fantasies . Plus , other Brit secondaries in brief appearances as Adrienne Corri and Percy Herbert . Evocative and adequate photography in black and white by professional cinematographer Denis Coop . Atmospheric and appropriate musical score by composer Paul Glass . A remake to this film was planned during the period of 2007-2009 , Reese Witherspoon was attached to the project which was ultimately shelved.
This engrossing , riveting picture was effective and compellingly directed by Otto Preminger . At the beginning he became a stage director and subsequently a notorious secondary actor . Otto directed several films , nowadays many of them are considered as classic movies . He made ¨Laura¨ that was released in 1944 and Preminger ranked as one of the top directors in the world . He realized all kind of genres as Court drama such as the great success ¨Anatomy of a murder¨, ¨Court martial of Billy Mitchell¨ , Noir film as ¨Laura¨ which made him an A-list director in Hollwyood , ¨Angel Face¨ , ¨Man with a golden arm¨, Religious drama as ¨The Cardinal¨ , Musical as ¨Porgy and Bess¨, ¨Carmen Jones¨ , Western as ¨River with no return¨ and historical as ¨Saint Joan¨, ¨Exodus¨ though also had some flop as ¨Rosebud¨ getting scathing reviews , though with ¨The human factor¨ won him respectful notices . However , his powers began to wane after and by the end of the decade of the 60s he was considered washed-up . ¨Bunny Lake is missing¨ resulted to be one of the his best films . Rating : Better than average . Worthwhile watching .